The Muggle Girl
by nevillesremembrall
Summary: On a trip with the Weasley's, Harry meets - and falls for - a Muggle girl. While she introduces him to the Muggle childhood he never knew, will she see his world?
1. Chapter 1

Harry Potter's eyes drooped as he stared blankly at the wall.

_One more day . . ._ he thought.

Harry remembered that Professor Dumbledore had insisted that he spend at least four weeks with the Dursley's every summer. "To be polite, Harry. It is always good to be grateful, even for the most discreet things."

It was finally the end of those wretched weeks and tomorrow the Weasley's would come and pick him up. He wouldn't even have to look at his aunt and his uncle until June came again.

He went to pack his trunk full of everything he would need for Hogwarts that he already had, such as his Firebolt, his quills and the parts of his uniform that he hadn't already grown out of.

Harry's shoulders sagged as he headed downstairs for his last dinner with the Dursley's, for the year at least.

"…and highly dangerous criminal, Sirius Black, has still yet to be found after his reported second escape from the authorities."

He walked into the living room only to find his relatives crowded around the television set. Harry didn't know if the news report should make him happy, or just upset.

On one hand, it was good that they hadn't caught Sirius, as he was innocent. But the report only reminded Harry that his beloved Godfather was unjustly on the run from both wizard and Muggle authorities alike.

Harry's uncle, Vernon, looked up and grunted at the black haired boy standing before him. He tilted his head to lazily mime that Harry's dinner was in the kitchen.

As he sat down to a bland meal of boiled potatoes, boiled beans and undercooked chicken, Harry's thoughts drifted to the events of last year.

He remembered when he had first discovered Peter Pettigrew's name on the Marauder's Map. He remembered how excited Sirius had been when Harry had finally believed him to be innocent. He pondered the sickening feeling of watching Sirius fly away, still a fugitive.

Suddenly, Harry wasn't hungry. He pushed his plate away and trudged up the stairs. Pulling the covers over his head, he fell into a weary sleep.

"Good morning Harry! And you _must_ be his aunt and uncle. An honour it is sir, ma'am. You're both Muggles then. Pleased. Simply charmed. Now off we go Harry m'boy!"

Mr. Weasley was _very _excited. Other than the Granger's, he had never really had the opportunity to meet many Muggles.

Harry clomped down the stairs, holding in his hand his _very_ heavy trunk. In the other hand, he held his owl, Hedwig's cage. This made navigating the precarious steps fairly difficult. However, a flick of Mr. Weasley's wand fixed that problem.

The Dursley's stood, shocked and fearful, as Harry's trunk floated down the stairs and landed gently near the door. As this happened, another figure appeared in the doorway.

"Hey Harry! How's your summer been?"

"Ron! Fine, I suppose…" Harry looked over his shoulder towards his aunt, uncle and cousin. "But I've still got a month left, don't I?"

"Ha, YES! Dad's got a trip planned. Won't tell us what it is though. Mum can't stand it and Ginny's no better."

"Ron, you know that my trip is a surprise. I can't exclusively spoil it" Mr. Weasley levitated the trunk again and opened the door, smiling back at the wide-eyed Dursley's. As he exited the house, he pestered Harry with the usual questions about Muggles, but Harry didn't mind - it took his thoughts away from Sirius.

Harry loaded into the car beside Ron, setting Hedwig on the empty passenger seat. The ride was suspiciously silent. It was uneventful except for the nosy looks Ron kept giving his father and the soft, impatient hooting coming from the direction of the caged owl.

When they arrived at the Burrow, Mrs. Weasley was at the doorway to meet them.

"Harry, dear, good to see you. My! How thin you are! Come along then, I've breakfast prepared. Arthur, Ron, you as well. You two must be simply _famished_!"

Just as soon as Harry entered the house, he was ambushed by Hermione. She pulled him into a tight hug.

"_Harry!_ Oh! I've been so concerned, but I suppose that I always am. Sometimes I think that you'll enter that house and you'll come out this depressed little boy who won't want to go to Hogwarts. Or that maybe, just maybe, your owls will stop and you won't show up for school and you'll be locked in that _terrible_ broom closet again. Oh! Harry!"

She spoke so fast that Harry could barely make out half of the words. He grimaced, but was in such a position that she couldn't see it, nor could anyone else, even if they tried.

Harry knew that this outburst would be mostly centred around the events of the past year. Although she knew that he hadn't technically lost anything, it was completely - well - _Hermione_ to make this a big deal. However, something in her words, anything, made him feel better. Maybe it was the fact that she didn't underestimate the determination of his relatives, like everyone else did.

His thoughts were cut short, however, by the twins skidding around the corner and landing in the kitchen next to Harry.

"Hiya Harry!" Fred said brightly.

"I suppose you're here because our father…" George began.

"…and our brother…"

"…came to rescue you." they finished together. The twins had a tendency to finish each others sentences. It became quite unnerving at times.

Fred and George smiled widely. They always seemed to be on the happy side. This, too, was unnerving.

At that exact moment, Ginny walked in. She looked around the kitchen, her eyes finally resting on Harry. Her face turned a brilliant pink. It reminded Harry of the first time he'd been to the Burrow. She had been so embarrassed to even be around him. He had assumed that after the Chamber of Secrets fiasco, she would be more comfortable around him, but he supposed he was mistaken.

Therefore, he was quite shocked to hear a small voice mutter, "Hello Harry. I suppose Ron picked you up for Dad's surprise vacation."

"Yeah, I s'pose. _You _don't know where it is do you Ginny?"

"Um, no. I just hope it's not Egypt again…"

George sniggered. Harry remembered being told by Ron that Fred and George had "accidentally" closed the entrance of the tomb Ginny was visiting. They'd kept her in there, in the dark, alone, with all of the bones and creepy writing for a good ten minutes.

It was at that point that Mrs. Weasley had discovered their little activity and given them such and ear-full that they had run all the way to the gift shop and had immersed themselves in magical bones that glowed and make a humming sound whenever anyone got within two feet of them.

"I do hope it's somewhere like Rome or Greece - somewhere with a lot of history." Hermione looked up from ancient runes textbook she was perusing.

"Yes! Excellent. Maybe they'll have chariot races." Hermione scowled at Ron's comment.

'Or, maybe, it will be Diagon Alley, to get your schoolbooks. Have you all eaten. Good. Harry, have you got your letter with you. Fine then. What an organized young man. Alright, I guess we'll use the Floo Network. Is that alright with you Harry?" Mrs. Weasley entered the kitchen.

Everyone's head turned to the blushing Harry. He remembered the first time he had tried travelling by the Floo Network. He ended up in KnockturnAlley. Turning his eyes to his now empty plate, he nodded furiously, ignoring the feeling of eyes on the back of his neck.

With a pinch of Floo powder and a clear shout ("DIAGON ALLEY!") he was with the other Weasley's, and Hermione, in the worlds greatest magical shopping area.

The large group started at Gringotts - the wizards bank - and then worked their way through the rest of the shops.

They got robes, parchment, quills, ink, books, potion ingredients, food for Errol and Hedwig and Harry bought the group strawberry-fudge sundaes from Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour. When they were finished their ice cream, they double-checked the Hogwarts lists and then headed back to the Burrow via the Floo Network.

Harry spent the rest of the day unpacking his school supplies and shoving them into a drawer in Ron's room because he would need the trunk space for when he went on the trip with the Weasley's and Hermione.

He was honoured that they had invited him. Even though he knew that they cared about him very much, it could very well have been a family thing and they could have left him with his aunt and uncle for the rest of the summer, until they picked him up for Hogwarts.

That night, Harry settled into bed, very aware that they were leaving two days from then. He was glad that he had something to distract his subconscious from Sirius because he was growing tired of having dreams about a certain shaggy animagus wrestling with a werewolf to save Harry's life.


	2. Chapter 2

Harry hadn't realised that packing for a vacation was so exhausting. He had always just assumed that you packed - never considering what it might entail. Of course, Harry had never been on a vacation of any sort - save the house on the rock that his relatives dragged him to, to avoid his magical past.

Hermione walked into Ron's room at six-thirty in the morning and told them to wake up. Harry, being extremely excited, quickly got up and attempted to shoo Hermione out of the room so that he could dress. She wouldn't budge easily and when Ron wouldn't wake up, she picked a pillow off of Harry's bed and tossed it at Ron.

"Honestly Ronald! Wake up. Come on then boys, we've got to move. We're leaving in an hour and a half and we've yet to pack or eat our breakfast." She glanced approvingly at Harry who was folding his Muggle clothes and neatly packing them into his trunk. "Good Harry. Really Ron? Get up!"

She stormed out of the room and left them to their own. After shoving some school books - for reading - and some owl treats into his trunk alongside his clothes, he shut the lid abruptly. Harry left the room with his trunk just as Ron was beginning to stir.

He met Mr. Weasley in the hall and nodded to the man, who was preoccupied with double checking all of the packing. "Fred! George! No boys, you can't take _those_ where we're going. No! No Filibuster Fireworks either. I saw that Fred, and whatever it is, I'm positive it's dangerous or disruptive so you can't it."

Harry chuckled as he saw the twins sneak the fireworks in anyway. Mr. Weasley didn't notice though, as he already had his head stuck in Percy's room, telling him that he couldn't take so much parchment and whoever he was writing would have to be patient.

As he clomped down the stairs, Harry could smell the alluring scent of pancakes frying. He slipped into the open kitchen and plucked one off of a plate. It burnt his tongue slightly, but Harry found it to be well worth it. The juicy blueberries inside burst and washed against the roof of his mouth, warm and sweet.

"Oh good morning dear. I'm proud of you, getting ready on your own. Now where is Ron? It's already seven o'clock and he isn't down yet." Mrs. Weasley fussed with Harry's messy hair as she drained the syrup pitcher onto a stack of pancakes.

Fred and George came bounding into the room, with Percy in tow. He looked quite disgruntled and the expressions on the twins faces confirmed Harry's suspicions - whatever happened to Percy, Fred and George were responsible for.

"Good morning to you Harry! I hope…" George beamed.

"…That our old man's trip…"

"…isn't too…what's the word Forge?"

"Why I think _pitiful_ would work quite well, would it not Gred?"

"Brilliant!" The twins looked at each other.

Half and hour later, everyone was fed and watered and the excited gleam in Mr. Weasley's eye was only getting worse as he spoke,

"Alright. Now I know that you impatient kids," he paused to look over at the twins, who were rocking back and forth on their heels, "are simply dying to know where we're going but you'll have to wait until we arrive. So, I've got all of the trunks loaded into the Angelina. Off we go!"

Mr. Weasley practically skipped towards the door. Mrs. Weasley looked a little annoyed but plastered a slight smile on her face anyway. Ginny was scowling - an expression Percy shared - and was clearly not enjoying having secrets kept from her. Harry assumed that Percy was a little off because he wouldn't be able to send hundreds of letters to Penelope Clearwater.

The twins were grinning like maniacs while they ran ahead of their father, racing to get to the car. Hermione's expression was neutral. She would have read about hundreds of country's and cities - as Harry so correctly assumed - and was prepared for anywhere. Ron was walking next to Harry, listing off all the places he thought they might go.

"Dad's been reading up on Athens a bit so we might go there. Of course, he's always wanted to see the magical Australian reserve, just off the Great Barrier Reef…but Mum wants to go to France. Dad likes to do what Mum wants but this is _his_ trip. And Percy wanted to stay home but last summer, when we went to Egypt, he said that he would have rather gone to Japan to see the dojo's.

"But Ginny's such a Daddy's girl and she wanted to go to Romania to see the Dragon's. However, Mum wont hear of it, thinks we'll get hurt so that's out. But Mum _does_ want to visit Bill. Now, the twins want to go to Las Vegas but I'm sure Dad's to afraid to give them consent. Me? Where do I want to go? I was thinking maybe the Quiddich World Cup. I'm hoping that's where we're going…"

The car took off with a jolt. The ride was exceedingly long and Harry eventually lost track of their turns, after they left Devon County.

He stared out of the window and watched the trees flow by. Their colours blurred as the speed of the car rose - as they were on the freeway. Soon the scene outside was a dance of yellow and green. Fallen leaves were whisked away as the air going by the Ford Angelina caught them in a waltz.

The twins played a game of exploding snap - much to the displeasure of their mother, who confiscated the cards claiming that it was not a game for confined spaces. Their original entertainment deprived, they took to teasing Percy about his new job at the Ministry. He had received the confirmation owl the day before.

Soon enough, they boarded a Ferry. Mr. Weasley was ecstatic as he announced that they could get out of the car and walk around the deck.

In a flash, the large boat was covered with fascinated Weasley's.

Mr. Weasley was talking to the captain about how the boat ran, when Ferry's originated and other such things. Mrs. Weasley was leaning over the side - clearly seasick. Ginny was standing by her mother, cautiously eying all of the strangers. Percy was following Fred and George, claiming that they were like little bugs - you corner and confront one and the other runs off in the opposite direction. This was beginning to amuse the twins and they gave up their game of bothering the Muggles to allow themselves to be corned only to make an insect noise and run different ways, laughing.

Ron was muttering to himself and was earning reproving looks from Hermione. Instead, he decided to ask her and Harry all about the Muggle world. Every time he asked one question, their answers would stimulate another.

"So why do Muggles need Berry's? Can't they just drive or walk where they're going. I wonder how they survive without Floo…"

Miss Granger looked exceedingly frustrated. "Ron, it's _Ferry_. And no, they can't just drive or walk. Can you walk on water? Didn't think so. If they tried driving on water the car would just sink. And don't you know that the Oceans separate so many Continents and river's separate so many country's and cities. The land isn't all connected. Gosh! I simply cannot believe that Hogwarts is all the education that witches and wizards get! They need to know math and geography… they just do!"

"In answer to that last question, I suppose they do it by their own means. You have Floo and they have cars and trains and boats, mate." Harry almost laughed at the determined expression on Hermione's face. He was afraid she was going to bring a map to Hogwarts and try to teach everyone geography.

After what seemed like several hours, a voice came over the intercom:

"Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for riding with Sunset Oceanic Ferry Boat Services. We will be arriving at our destination in just ten minutes. We suggest you re-enter your cars and ready yourselves for the unloading process. We hope you have a safe rest of trip."

The nine of us reluctantly re-entered the car. I took the window seat with Hermione on my right. The engine rumbled as Mr. Weasley turned the key.

We drove for what seemed like hours. It was too long. Hermione bent her head towards mine and began to speak, "Well, I think that it's safe to say that we are out of the continent. Based on the direction we travelled, we are either in North America or Asia."

Ron looked over and piped in, "North America or Asia then? Well then either Percy's getting his way or Dad picked something completely different. Hmm. Oh! Shoot, this doesn't out rule the twins and Las Vegas."

Hermione rolled her eyes and turned to Ron. "Ron, I doubt that you can imagine where we're going. I seriously don't think that your father is going to do what everyone else is asking of him. I assume that wherever we're going, it's completely unexpected.

Ron was deprived of any response as Mr. Weasley tilted his head and began to speak. Immediately, he gained the attention of the bored and impatient twins, who were ready to hear where they were going.

"Okay. The trip's almost over. We'll be arriving at our destination in ten minutes. By the way, the sight's here are pretty impressive so if you can see out the window, you might enjoy watching the scenery."

Harry looked out the window. They were driving along a street in an area that was clearly not in Asia. There was a sparkling lake just outside Harry's window and on the other side was a row of houses with a few restaurants and fishing gear rental places mixed in.

As the whole collection of Weasley's (plus Hermione and Harry) _ooo_ed and _aah_ed at the lake, they saw the civilians lying on towels and splashing each other with the water. Out deeper, they saw what Harry and Hermione recognised to be boats. Fred and George were just excited and confused when they saw that people were sitting on tubes and being pulled behind the vehicles.

As they turned onto another street, the lake recited from view. The road was less busy and they saw many houses lined up on either side. Harry was surprised to see that all of the houses looked, well, different than it's neighbour. On Privet Drive, all of the houses were nearly identical to that of the Dursley's.

The car bumped to a stop in front of a tall, grey bricked building. It was three stories tall with a big backyard and had seven windows, just on the front of the house. The group exited the car and stood in front of it. Mr. Weasley broke out of the clump to stand in front of them.

"We've reached our destination and…Fred! George! Do _not_ aim those fireworks at that person's house! As I was saying, we've reached our destination and it's probably not where any of you was expecting. As I assume that you've already predicted, we are in the Muggle world. Canada - that's a country - is where we are on the globe. Welcome to the city of Sarnia!

"But because this is the Muggle world, I am recommending that you use magical items only in times of need. Your wands should be hidden at all times and I won't stand for your frightening the citizens of this small town. I'm telling you - this is a fair change from England. The currency is different, the accents are different and the shops are different. I'll tell you now, you will quickly be identified as British because of the way you speak and I advise you not to deny it. We can't have the Muggles suspicious, now can we? It simply wouldn't do. Now, go into the house and pick your rooms. There are four bedrooms and a basement. You already know your room pairings. Go."

Fred and George dashed off at a breakneck pace yelling, "We're picking the best room! We're picking the best room!"

Percy rolled his eyes and leisurely walked behind his parents, reading a report from the Ministry. Ginny and Hermione were walking at a fair pace but weren't bothering to run too fast. Ron and Harry, however, decided to run after the twins and pick a decent room.

By the time any of them got in the house, the twins had already put a sign on the room with a view of the backyard (and the neighbours - "perfect for spying, eh George?") that said _we already claimed this room. If you try to steal it, you'll wish you'd never crossed the best pranksters in Weasley history!_

Harry and Ron weren't too happy about the twins getting such a good room, but Harry quickly told Ron to investigate the basement. As it turns out, the basement bedroom was the largest of them all. It had some serious desk space (which made Hermione exceedingly envious) and had one Queen sized bed and one King sized pull-out couch. Harry made a dash for the couch, saying that what with his dreams, he needed all of the rolling around space he could get.

Ron was more than happy to take the bed. "It's the biggest bed I've ever slept in, mate. Seriously, you've seen my bed at the Burrow! It's bloody small." Hermione just happened to be coming down to announce dinner and took the opportunity to severely chastise Ron on his foul language.

"Tomorrow, I think that we should go for a walk. This town is fairly small and we'll see so many Muggle things!" Mr. Weasley said excitedly as they sat down to a quick meal of chicken soup with rice.

After they had eaten that, Mrs. Weasley shooed them off to bed, as it was approaching eleven-thirty at night by the time they had eaten the dinner.

As they lay in bed, Harry thought about how fun it would be to truly experience the Muggle world. He had lived in it for years but he had never _seen_ it. Ron voiced his thought's to some extent when he said, "Hey, mate, do you really think it'll be as fun as Dad supposes? I assume so. I really want to go for a swim in that lake. It'll be nice to even think of swimming without worrying about a giant squid or the me people…"

Before Harry could answer, Ron was snoring.


End file.
